WIC

babymamaT77

How many of you have you enrolled in WIC during your pregnancies. Would you recommend it?

I know a lot of my military wife friends have done it and I know that as a military spouse you are automatically approved for it, but I can't help but be sort of prideful about the whole thing.

 Any advice/ your experience you want to share?

ufsandra85

i dont think everyone is automatically approved for it. i think it is based off of your income. I couldnt imagine a mm making 100k being approved for WIC... I could be totally wrong though.

DowagerCountessofNJ

Forget your pride for a second, you need to ask yourself do you truly need the assistance?  If you do, don't second guess yourself and definitely apply for it.  If you don't need the assistance don't enroll in it just for the chance of getting certain things covered for you.  There are people who truly need and rely on the assistance the program offers and you would be taking it away from those people.

Lissa832

You don't automatically qualify. Do you work? If you do, chances are, you won't qualify. Secondly, do you really have a need for it? WIC is not welfare. If you qualify for welfare, you get welfare. WIC is a limited funded program. Just because you qualify does not mean you will receive it if there are not available funds. So, if you don't actually have a need for it, don't take it. That is one thing that really irks me about people. We have no need for it, and I won't take the chance of taking WIC away from a family who DOES need it. WIC is an amazing program for those who really have a need for it.

Brit242

1ht

1st of all, you are not automatically approved.  it is based off of the soldier's base pay plus the spouse's take home pay.  if you make a certain amount then you can't get it.

with that said, i enrolled in wic when i was about 28 weeks pregnant and am still on it.  it has definitely helped us with the essential grocery items.  if you need assisstance then you should look into it, but like pp's said, if you don't need it then don't get it.

MilMom2B

I don't have much to add just backing up the PPs.

Not all military are automatically approved. I have one milspouse friend who applied and was denied (E-4, no other kids, she works 10 hours a week) as well as one who applied and was approved (E-4 also, one child in the house already, she doesn't work).

I have never applied because we don't need it, and my husband and I don't believe in taking assistance away from those who truly do need it. If we were having trouble buying milk and such, then we'd cut back elsewhere in the budget. So I have no idea if we would be approved. 

Edit: I do know that some military families do indeed need it. So, I'm not judging your situation at all. If you are having trouble buying the nutritious things you need to keep yourself and baby healthy then by all means apply.

Epeter1

I applied for WIC and was denied. I dont work, no other kids, but my husband's an E-4 and apparently makes too much.

So think about it. If u need the help- apply for it - i totally agree.

MamaCat21

I am not planning on applying at the moment.
If I have breastfeeding difficulties with my twins, then I might apply because MH is getting out of the military right after they're born, and at the moment we don't have a definite job lined up.

JMU_Bride09

Sgt M's Wife:

Forget your pride for a second, you need to ask yourself do you truly need the assistance?  If you do, don't second guess yourself and definitely apply for it.  If you don't need the assistance don't enroll in it just for the chance of getting certain things covered for you.  There are people who truly need and rely on the assistance the program offers and you would be taking it away from those people.

This.  And it is definitely based upon income.  If you and your husband are bringing in a certain amount of money each month, you won't qualify.  I don't know the numbers, but check to see if there is an office on base or at your base hospital.  You can ask them there.

FinallyMommy2B

I just got signed up for WIC yesterday, and I am 39 weeks and 3 days along. Pride was a big deal. I knew my husband and I would qualify but I kept telling myself he would find another job and things would get better (he's in the reserves). But that hasnt happened and we are about out of savings. So, since we need the assistance, I sucked it up so I can be sure to at least have what WIC can provide us.

It is income based, however the income guildelines are dependant upon where you live, and how many people are in your household. Also, it factors in how many people are dependant upon the provided income.

If you and your family are having hard times, and you can benefit from the assistance, by all means GO AND APPLY!! WIC is one of the very few government assistance programs that is well funded and under-used right now. They even told me that in the office and they even encouraged me to let any other women I can, know there is help available.

I know pride can be a big deterrent, especially if I am seeing those pics of yours correctly and your DH is a Marine. But when it comes down to it, the health of you and your child are FAR more important. WIC is there to help. Use it! That's what it's for, and dont feel bad about giving yourself and your LO everything you deserve.

Good luck and Semper Fidelis!

JessC28

I'm on WIC-Overseas. My husband is an E5 and I'm a fulltime student. I know the qualifications and services are different for overseas. We still would have qualified even with me working because of our location. We could survive without it, but it's nice to have that little extra. It probably saves us about $40-75 a month depending on if we use all the checks or not. 

The nicest thing about it is the support more than the checks. There's a formal appointment every three months, but they welcome you to drop in whenever you need to talk to an LC or want to see what LO weighs, etc. I had an appointment when LO was 2 days old and my consultant gave me a hand pump because I was sore from my milk coming in. On our base, they also have a BFing room available that's central to the AFRC and MPF that was nice on the days we would be in MPF all day getting LO enrolled in DEERS and getting his birth certificate, passport, and visa, etc.

I was told the same thing as PP, WIC is currently over-funded and under-used because of the misunderstanding of its services (I'm not implying the previous posters misunderstand, I mean the public in general views it as a grocery-buying service only).

If you feel you need it, pride should not be an issue. 

 

DreamaJoy24

I couldn't breast feed and if we didn't use WIC, we would have definitely struggled with formula costs. My husband was an E-2 when we had DD and WIC was actually a huge blessing. My pride stood in the way at first but since it's government funded, like hubby's paychecks (LOL), I tell myself it's an extension of his paycheck for my daughter.

AF_EOD_wife

Hi, I'm a military spouse who does not qualify for WIC.

It's not automatic, nor should it be. It is income based and, like all government assistance, should only be used by those who have a true need for it. 

rachelgehron

As other's posted, put the whole 'pride' thing aside for a minute and consider if you really need the assistance.

For example, we PCS'ed when I was 30 weeks pregnant and not working.  We enrolled in WIC (it's based on your income- our base used the base pay and BAS; housing was not included in income) and it's based on your household size. If it's you & pregnant and hubby- your family size is 3 and there's a chart with how much you can make a month and still receive benefits.

My benefits include milk, bread, cheese, fresh fruits and veggies, etc.  For example, I qualified for 4 gallons of milk, a loaf of bread, dozen eggs, to name a few (this is per month).  When it's all said and done, we saved about $50/month in groceries through the WIC program.  It's not much, but every little bit helped.

I am going to be breastfeeding, so those benefits will not change until baby is 4 or 6 months, or my income increase and we go off the program.

Good luck and consider your options and needs!